Could This Be Real?
by LoveIsMySpecialty
Summary: First story! Comments and reviews are welcome and appreciated. I changed the reason Ali is no longer in Rosewood simply because I don't want to go too in depth with that.
1. Chapter 1

Emily woke up to the loud sound of a moving truck door closing. She inhaled deeply while stretching out her legs. Then she threw off the covers and walked over to the window. Down below were a bunch of people scurrying around, carrying boxes, unloading vehicles, and some even standing, doing nothing.

"Oh my God, it's really happening. Somebody is moving into Ali's old house." She could feel the memories coming back. _Ali, the girl she once had feelings for._

"Emily? Can you come down here please?" Her mom called from downstairs. She had that tone of voice, the one you could feel as if you had done something wrong. Emily quickly changed her clothes and went down. "There's a new girl next door, go and help her move in please." Emily's mom didn't make eye contact, so she was being totally serious. Emily rolled her eyes and did as she was told.

As soon as she stepped onto the property, Emily remembered the time Ali had taken her by the hand and ran inside the house. She took her up to her room to ask her opinion of a new bra she got. Ali held it up in the mirror. Emily looked at her with a grin. Without asking Em to turn around, Ali tore off her shirt and bra and put on the new one. Em didn't know how to react, so she stood there with wide eyes.

"Can I help you?" A hand was waving in Emily's face, snapping her out of the memory. Standing in front of her was a young, beautiful, curly-haired black girl. The girl smiled. "Do you live next door? I'm Maya."

Emily smiled when Maya said her name. _Maya, such a pretty name._ "Yes, I'm Emily. Um, welcome to the neighborhood." Emily looked at Maya's outfit to check out the rest of her body. She smiled again, but stopped when she realized she was checking her out. "Oh, my mom told me to come over and offer my help. So can I help you move anything? Or setup your room?" Emily looked away for a moment, wondering why she had just said that. She literally just asked to see her room when she already knew what the inside of the house looked like.

Maya chuckled. "Actually, I would love to have some company if you don't mind. My brother is a little annoying right now and I could use an older person to chat with." Maya motioned for her to follow, and Emily did.

Boxes and newspaper were scattered everywhere inside. Maya pointed out a few things, even though Emily already knew where things were. When they reached Maya's room…Ali's old room…Emily flashed back to that memory from earlier. She could see Ali standing there in her new bra. She looked at Emily. "How do I look Em?"

"Emily, are you ok?" Maya was looking at her weird again.

"What? Oh yeah. Sorry, I was just remembering something that happened in here." Emily walked in further and stood next to the bed. Red sheets and a comforter with a lighter shade of red were on it. Maya plopped down onto it and padded the spot next to her, asking for Emily to join her.

"So you knew the people that lived her then?" Emily nodded yes as she sat down. "What were they like?"

"The girl, Alison, was my…" she paused for a brief moment. "My best friend. We were really close. And one day she and her family decided to move without giving any of us a real reason as to why." She paused again. "I haven't heard from Alison since a fight we had just before she moved." She looked down at the floor.

Maya reached over and rested her hand on Emily's. "I'm sorry to hear that. Do you want to talk about what happened?" Emily shook her head. "That's ok, I understand. You don't know me that well."

Emily didn't even realize that Maya's hand was on top of hers. When she turned to look at Maya, she saw them touching and gasped. Immediately, she pulled her hand away because she could feel something returning. "Sorry, it's just a really sensitive subject. And you're right, I don't know you that well. But now that you live next door, maybe we can become friends." They both smiled.

Maya got up to spray some banana coconut body spray on her. Emily could smell it shortly after she did. It went into her nose like an aphrodisiac. She instantly closed her eyes and took in the smell as much as she could. It entranced her so much that she forgot where she was and that Maya was looking at her. When she couldn't smell it anymore, she opened her eyes and saw Maya staring at her funny. Then they both laughed. "Sorry, I just liked the smell of that spray." Emily could feel her face starting to blush. "So, do you play any sports?" Emily was trying to change the subject.

"I played basketball for a while, but I didn't think I was any good, so I stopped. I play music though." She jerks her head to the right, towards her cello. "It's a cello, not a guitar."

_Oh my God, she plays cello._ Emily had a secret love for the sound of a cello. It soothed her. She smiled nonchalantly, trying to play it off. "Sweet. I swim." Her phone went off. She reached into her pocket and pulled it out. Mom texted her asking how things were going. Emily rolled her eyes and deleted the message. "So I'm assuming you're going to Rosewood then? Maybe we'll see each other in the halls."

Maya nodded. "Or we could go to school together." Emily was a little shocked to hear her say that. "If that's ok with you." Maya watched Emily closely for a reaction.

"Sure, I don't see a problem with that. I can show you around the school, too."

"I'd like that." Emily stood up from the bed. She reached out her hand for a shake, but Maya shook her head. "Really, a handshake? I prefer hugs." Maya chuckled and walked over to hug Emily. She grabbed her firmly and hugged her sweetly. Emily was a little reluctant at first, but eventually wrapped her arms around Maya. Maya pulled back slightly to look at Emily. "Thank you for the company. It was nice to get to know you a little." They stared each other in the eyes.

The smell of her body spray came back. Emily again felt something inside. That familiar feeling she had so long ago. For some reason, she wanted to stay there with Maya. "Yeah, you too. But I have to go help of my friends with something." Emily let go of Maya and started towards the door.

Just before Emily walked through the doorway, Maya spoke up. "You know Emily, you're really cute. You know that?" She smiled at her.

Emily froze and slowly turned around. She couldn't think of a single thing to say, so she simply smiled. After a moment, she walked out of the room. Once she hit downstairs, she rushed back to her own room and closed the door. "Oh my God, it's happening all over again."


	2. Chapter 2

Once Emily had caught her breath from that surprising revelation, she went over to her desk and pulled out the letters Ali had written her. Ali and Emily wrote each other letters a while back, when Ali was still here that is. The first one Emily would always reread was the one from freshman year.

"Emily, last night was a night that I will never forget. The way you treat me every day is so sweet and charming. When we hang out, I feel like nothing can stop us from having fun. We always know how to make each other smile and cheer up. I don't think I could ask for a better friend than you." Emily sat down on her bed and could feel the tears coming back. "But don't tell the rest of the girls I said that. You will always have a special place in my heart Emily. I don't know what the future holds for either of us, but I hope that we will still have each other in the end. I love you Emily. Forever."

_Why did she have to leave? Why won't she call me? What did I do?_ Emily let out a grunt as she laid back onto the bed. She closed her eyes and pictured her and Ali in her back yard laughing and smiling. They were lying out, sun bathing, and making fun of boys from school. It was the summer before junior year. Ali was wearing a hot pink bathing suit on her nicely tanned body. Emily had on a black bikini top with matching black board shorts. The only time she would reveal more down there was when she had to wear her Rosewood swim suit, and that was a one-piece. Ali reached for her Diet Pepsi and sipped on it. Then she looked over at Emily.

"Hey Em, remember that time we were all hanging out at the park and we saw Noel take someone to the Kissing Rock?" Emily looked at her and nodded. "Would you ever go there with," she paused for a moment and smiled. "Would you ever take me there?"

Emily's eyes became as wide as they could be. She cleared her throat while thinking about the answer. She already knew the answer, but she was so shocked that Ali had just asked that. Before answering her, she sat up a bit. "Do you _want_ to go there with me?" She was sort of hoping Ali would say no, but she also wanted her to say yes.

Ali sat up too and crossed her legs seductively. "Can we go now?"

Emily coughed, as if choking on the words Ali had just said. When she looked back up, Ali was giving her that look. The look of "I know you want to kiss me," and those eyes that lured her into doing it. "Um, ok, if that's what you want."

Ali sprang up and reached out her hand for Emily's. "Come on, I know a short cut." She smiled at her and walked through the woods. Along the way, Ali started swinging their arms to and fro. Emily chuckled a couple times, but inside her head she was worried about how she was going to kiss Ali once they got there. Should she do it quickly, like a fast peck? Or maybe slip in a little tongue? What about a small kiss that leads to a more passionate kiss, her hand behind Ali's neck? However she did it, it had to be perfect. She couldn't help but wonder what was going through Ali's mind right then, but she didn't have the courage to ask. Emily just kept walking.

Ali suddenly stopped. Emily looked around and saw why…Jenna was sitting up against a tree. Emily leaned in close to whisper into Ali's ear. "Maybe she won't know we're here since she can't see." Ali bent over and picked up a rock and threw it behind Jenna, hoping she would jump and think someone was coming. Jenna did just that: she sprang up and felt her way back to the people she was with. As soon as she was gone, Ali pulled Emily to the Kissing Rock and sat down. When Emily sat down, Ali tilted her head and smiled at her. Emily looked back at her softly. "What?"

Ali leaned in a little closer and whispered "what do you think?" She slowly inched even closer. A piece of her hair slipped from behind her ear and glistened brightly in the light. Emily loved the way Alison's hair shined in the sunlight. It flowed so smoothly from her head and onto her shoulders. And it smelled like honey suckles. She could smell it in her mind and became entranced.

Emily's heart started to race. _This is it. What do I do?_ She took a breath in and held it for a second before leaning in to meets Ali's lips. They barely touched, teasing the other, wanting more. Emily shakily moved her arm and placed her hand on Ali's shoulder. She suddenly pulled Ali closer to her and kissed her lips so tenderly. Ali breathed loudly through her nose and put her hand on Emily's leg, just above the knee. Emily became hypnotized by Ali's lips and moved her hand to her cheek. As she did that, they both opened their mouths a little and Ali slipped in some tongue. At the feel of Ali's tongue, Emily pulled back. "Wait." She looked down.

Ali looked into her eyes concerned as she took her hand in her own. "What's wrong? Don't you love me, Em?"

Emily looked up immediately. "Of course I love you Alison. But why are we here? At the Kissing Rock? What is so important about kissing here? Why does it matter where you kiss someone if you love them?"

Ali waited patiently for her to finish. "Em, it doesn't matter to me. I just thought it would be sort of romantic. I'm sorry." Ali looked down at their hands.

Emily squeezed their hands. "It's fine Ali, I over reacted." She lifted Ali's hand and kissed it tenderly and smiled. "What do you say we go back to my house and get in the pool?" Ali leaned in again and kissed Emily on the lips. "I'll take that as a yes then?"

Ali stood up after nodding yes, still holding Emily's hand, and pulled her up. "Can we continue that kiss in the pool too?" Emily stood up and smiled widely, then nodded back.

"Emily?" A knock on the door woke her from the flashback. She sprang up startled.

"Yeah?" She cleared her throat as she ran her fingers through her hair. "Come in."

Emily's mom walked in. "Hey, how did things go? Did you get to know that girl?" She joined Emily on the bed and smiled.

"Mmhmm. Her name is Maya." Emily smiled when she said her name. "She's nice." She looked away for a moment and noticed the letters, so she quickly gathered them up and piled them on her desk.

Her mom watched curiously. "Well, I am going to invite her and her family over for dinner tonight." As soon as she said that, Emily froze in disbelief. She turned around slowly and dropped her jaw. "Is that a problem?"

She closed her mouth and swallowed. _Of course it's a problem! Why would you do that? Why don't you just kill me now?_ "No."

"Good. We're having lasagna." Her mom stood up. "Can you wear something a little nice for it? No sports clothes, please?" Emily nodded, waiting for her to leave. When she finally did, Emily fell face first onto her bed and screamed.

_This cannot be happening again._


	3. Chapter 3

Emily rolled over and let out a deep sigh. _Why would mom do this to me?_ She stared up at the ceiling while she thought. _Ok, so she thinks I'm cute. Maybe that's all. Maybe she's not into me like that. But what if she is? What do I do? I'm still in love with Alison._ She closed her eyes and remembered Alison. Her first girlfriend. The first girl she kissed. The first girl she ever loved. She relived the day the two of them were laying in a field at night, looking at the stars.

"Look, those look like an A." Ali pointed to a group of stars that somewhat resembled the letter A.

Emily smiled and looked over at her. "A for Alison." Ali looked back at her and kissed her lightly.

"That's what I love about you Emily. You're so sweet with the smallest things. Every little thing you do and say is just so sweet. You make me feel like nothing I've ever felt before." She paused for a moment. "I don't know how to describe it. I never want to let you go."

Emily took a deep breath in and smiled again. She was speechless. "Ali you make me feel the same way." She looked earnestly into Ali's eyes and blinked a few times. "I love you Ali." She could feel her heart racing, waiting for Ali to respond.

Ali sat up a bit and leaned in close to Emily. "I love you too Em." She smiled and kissed her again. Ali shifted her body and positioned herself on top of Emily. She kissed her tenderly with so much love.

Emily placed her hand on Ali's cheek as she kissed her back. She smiled through every kiss. And with every kiss, their passion grew even more. Ali kissed her even harder and finally slipped in a little tongue. Emily felt her body melting into Ali's and she didn't have a care in the world. Nothing could ruin this moment. Not even if it started raining.

Ali pulled away from kissing her for a few moments. "Say it again."

Emily smiled as she looked up at Ali. "I love you Alison, with all my heart." As soon as she said it, Ali went back to kissing her, this time a little harder and faster. Her breathing got heavier and she placed her hand on Emily's side.

Emily rolled over again and cuddled with a pillow, imagining it was Ali. She laid there for a few moments. She missed Ali so much. She couldn't think of any reason why Ali would just leave one day without saying why. _Why wouldn't she contact me? Did she get a new phone? Or did her parents block her phone?_ Emily let out a sigh. _Or what if she really did let me go and moved on?_ Emily opened her eyes when she felt like she was about to cry, but she decided to get up and try calling her again. She reached for her phone and scrolled through her contacts for Ali's number. She pressed send and put the phone up to her ear. It goes straight to voicemail. Emily cleared her throat as she listened to Ali speak. "Hey Alison, its Emily. Um, I'm just wondering how you're doing and if you're ok. I miss you so much. Please uh, please call me back soon. Or text me, whichever way is fine." She paused briefly. "I love you Ali." She pressed end and looked at the picture of her and Ali on her phone before putting it in her pocket.

The doorbell rang as Emily was coming down the stairs. "I got it." She knew her mom was too busy in the kitchen to answer the door anyway. She reached for the knob as she took a deep breath in and let it out. Turning the knob, she put on a fake smile. "Hello. I'm not sure if dinner is ready yet, but please make yourselves at home." Maya's parents walked in first, followed by her brother, then finally Maya. As she walked through the door, she gave Emily a really cute and innocent smile. Emily looked down at the floor as soon as she saw her. That familiar smell of coconut banana spray lingered into her nose and she closed her eyes for a second. She closed the door and waited for Maya to be a few steps in front of her before following them. When everyone was seated in the living room, Emily smiled again. "So how's everything coming? Did you get most of your stuff in and setup?" She was trying to break the silence.

Maya's mom spoke up. "Yes, we got all the bedroom stuff setup in everyone's room. So we all have a place to sleep tonight." She chuckled, so did Emily. Then there was silence. Emily was so tempted to look at Maya, but instead stood up.

"Let me check on dinner real quick." She walked into the kitchen and saw her mom taking the lasagna dish out of the oven. "Is it done yet?"

Her mom turned around and let out a sigh. "Yes, just need to let it cool for a bit." Her mom looked up and down at Emily's outfit. "That looks nice." She was wearing a nice pair of khaki capris and a neat blue V-neck t-shirt.

Emily smiled. "Thanks. Um, how about you go talk with them and I'll set the table?" She walked over to all the plates of food.

"Ok sure. What's the girl's name again? Mariah?"

Emily chuckled again. "Maya, its Maya." She smiled widely after saying her name. _Her name is Maya. Beautiful Maya._ "I don't know what her brother or her parents' names are. I guess I should've asked that." She shrugged and picked up the bowl of peas. Her mom walked out, and she followed, but turned into the dining room. She could hear her mom talking.

"Hello, I'm Pam. Nice to finally meet you all. And you must be Maya. Emily has talked so much about you." Emily froze when she heard that. _Really mom? You had to tell her that?_ She wanted to see what Maya would say back, so she leaned into the door frame.

"She has? Well I must have made quite an impression on her." She had a tone in her voice that was sweet and innocent, but also fake. As if Maya was sucking up to Emily's mom. Emily didn't care though, she thought it was kind of cute. She walked back into the kitchen and continued bringing out the rest of the food. When she was done, she joined the others and smiled.

"The table is set! Let's eat!" Everyone got up and walked into the dining room, which was beautifully decorated. There were even lit candles on the table with a small bouquet of flowers in the center.

"Wow this looks great." Maya looked at the table and then at Emily. "Good job, Em." _She called me 'Em.' I can't believe she just called me that._ Emily smiled back.

"Thanks." She walked over to the seat she wanted, and of course Maya sat in the seat next to her. Emily didn't know if she was happy or worried about that.

"I hope everyone likes lasagna 'cause I made plenty of it! Emily and I can't eat it all by ourselves." Pam smiled as she waited for everyone to be seated. The others laughed and nodded their heads. Emily rolled her eyes slightly.

Maya leaned over towards Emily. "Your mom is funny." Emily looked at her and smiled. They both chuckled. "Is she always like that?"

"I don't really know, we don't talk that much. When we do talk, it's usually about dad and his assignments." She looked down at her hands. "He's in Texas right now."

Maya noticed Emily looking down and gently placed her hand on top of Emily's. "I'm sorry to hear that. Do you miss him?"

She took Maya's hand and squeezed it. "Like crazy."

Maya squeezed back and looked earnestly at Emily. "It will be okay. I promise. He's in Texas, so he's still in the country."

Emily looked up at Maya and gave a little smile. "I know, it's just hard without him."

"We can talk about this later if you want." Maya let go of Emily's hand and took the bowl that was being passed to her and scooped a spoonful out and onto her plate, then passed it to Emily. Emily did the same.

"Thanks, I'd like that." She smiled as she passed the bowl on to the next person.

Dinner rolled on smoothly and everyone was now sitting in the living room chatting. Maya looked over at Emily. She pointed with her eyes to the stairs, and then mouthed out the words "wanna go talk now?" Emily nodded and waited for a moment between the adults talking to say anything. "Hey mom, I'm going to go show Maya my swim trophies."

"Ok hun, go have some girl chat." Her mom smiled as Maya and Emily got up and walked upstairs.

"My mom acts nicer when we have company, but she's not really like that when it's just us." Emily led Maya to her bedroom and they sat down on the bed; only a few feet were separating them.

"So do you and your mom, like, not get along or something?" Maya's question sort of stung in Emily's stomach.

Emily thought about what to say before saying it. She didn't want to give Maya the wrong idea. "She doesn't agree with some of the things I do." She looked away, not knowing what to do.

"Like what? I can't imagine you doing anything crazy. You seem like a really sweet girl." Maya watched her closely for a response.

Emily smiled widely and turned back to look at Maya. "Thanks. I don't really do anything crazy. She just-" She paused again and looked down. "She doesn't like who I am."

"You're Emily, her daughter and the girl next door. How could she not like who you are?" Maya scooted a little closer.

Emily thought really hard about what to say next. _Should I say it? Should I tell her I love my best friend as more than a friend? What if she makes a move on me?_ She inhaled deeply and let it out slowly. "Well Ali, that girl who used to live in your house, she was my girlfriend." Emily kept looking down, hoping Maya somehow hadn't heard what she said. Or that she would jump off the bed like a homophobe. When Maya didn't move, Emily looked up. Maya was a little teary-eyed. "That's my biggest secret. My best friends, our other friends, don't even know we had that relationship." She looked back down.

Maya licked her lips and wiped her eyes. "Emily, I'm so sorry your mom feels like that." She paused as she slowly inched her hand on top of Emily's. "But I know how you feel. I like girls too."

Emily looked up quickly, shocked and amazed. "You're gay? Really?" Maya nodded yes. "Wow, I would've thought you had some hot California guy."

"I do. But now I'm here." She scooted even closer to Emily.

Emily pulled away a tiny bit. "Wait, so are gay or bi?"

"I'm bi. My boyfriend and I have a lot of problems so I'm going to break up with him anyway. And now that I'm all the way across the country, I can look for new love."

Emily stood up suddenly. _Oh no, she wants me. I knew it. But no, I love Ali. Ali is the only girl I love. The only girl, no one else. _"Maya, you don't understand. I'm in love with Ali. No, I'm only in love with HER."

Maya looked down and bit her bottom lip, then looked out the window. "I guess I should go." She slowly stood up and walked around the bed. She stopped in front of Emily, but didn't know what to say.

Emily felt sort of bad. "I'm sorry Maya. That doesn't mean I don't like you." She could smell the body spray again and she took it in for a moment. "I think you are really nice. I would really like to be friends with you, if that's ok." Maya nodded and reached out her hand for a shake. Emily looked at her hand and smiled. "I thought you said you were a hugging person." When she said that, she outstretched her arms for a hug.

Maya smiled and embraced her. "Thanks Emily. I would like to get to know you a little better." They pulled away and smiled.

"Sure thing." They smiled at each other again and sat back down on the bed. They continued chatting and getting to know each other. And they continued smiling at each other. They didn't stop talking until Emily's mom came up to tell them Maya's family was ready to leave.

Emily thought for a moment. "Wait, why doesn't Maya sleep over?" She looked at Maya and smiled.

"I don't mind as long as her parents are ok with it."

"Oh I know they don't, but I'll ask them anyway, just for you. Come on Mrs. Fields!" She hopped off the bed and walked down the stairs to ask her parents. They said yes and Maya ran back up the stairs to tell Emily the good news. Her parents and brother left and Emily gave Maya some clothes to sleep in. They hopped in the bed and chatted quietly until they fell asleep.


End file.
